Clarity Makes the Impossible, Possible: When to Be More Clear

You want to build a blog or a website. You want a successful life. You want to have more meaningful relationships, better sex, stronger connections, and more freedom to live how you want. You want a lot of things, but you have no clarity about how to go from where you are now to making these the status quo for your life.

You may have seen this strategy laid out at some point:

That’s how you feel about all your goals right now. I get it.

I’m training to be a coach right now with Gaby Kamp. I’m masterminding this very website with Chloe Cotter. I’m starting a nonprofit with Kat Franchino. There’s a lot going on, and it’s a lot to keep track of. The overarching lesson bubbling up every day through all of this work is clarity.

Clarity is everything. It renders impossible feats possible. It matters for our interpersonal lives, professional goals, and definitely on our websites. And while you need to be applying clarity to the message on your website, you can’t possibly know what that message is until you’ve taken the time to define it for yourself personally and professionally.

So before wasting any more time on web tips, let’s talk about finding that clarity. When should you be more clear? (Hint, the answer is always.)

The Historic Power of Clarity

Language is a powerful thing. “The pen is mightier than the sword,” an adage passed to us through the ages, is a nod to the impact words can have on both individuals and society as a whole. Words shape the way we think, communicate, and make decisions.

Note, the adage is not meant for literal interpretation.

It is only right then, that we first clarify the meaning and origins of clarity.

Clarity, originating from the word clear, can be connected to Old French, Italian, and Spanish, dating back to the late 1300s. Over the years, it has held these definitions:

sparse

to shout

free from encumbrance

easily heard or loud

distinctly visible

manifest, plain, and evident

divine, famous, glorious

Clarity’s current definition is the quality of being clear with particular relevance to being coherent and intelligible, or the sharpness of image or sound.

Reviewing all possible definitions, we piece together a concept of pure, manifest glory being shouted from the mountaintops with nothing standing in our way. This is what we want for ourselves and for our goals. Unobstructed victory. Self-evident divinity.

It turns out clarity has been here this whole time, telling us how to get where we want to be. Tweet This

Step 1) Be Clear With Yourself

Clarity for Personal Use

Real talk: You’re sitting on top of a pile of failed hopes and dreams. Or… are you sitting on top of piles of experience that shape your decisions and allow you to better define what you want for yourself moving forward?

Which it is depends on how much clarity you have.

Having a clear head allows you to put your experiences and resources to use, instead of wallowing in them.

Clarity is to be obstacle-free. It is seeing what you need to do next, and how you need to do it considering the situation you are in. As my mom tells me, there is always the next best step.

Are you clear about where you are?

Are you clear about where you need to be?

Can you see the path from here to there?

Until you can honestly answer those questions, you will continue to feel a bit stuck and confused. By definition, if you have clarity, nothing stands in your way. And what you achieve with that clarity will be glorious.

Show them exactly how you make their life better – a.k.a. why they should listen to you.

Make it clear what to do next.

Here’s a knowledge bomb life hack: This checklist applies to almost every form of communication in your professional life, ever. Emailing a boss, colleague, client? Writing a sales page to market your new product? Creating a video? Making a tutorial? Pitching to investors?

This isn’t just about turning a website into a powerful sales tool, it’s about being successful anywhere, doing anything.

This structure clarifies who you are talking to, what the goal of each communication is, and what action point comes next. If you remember, one of the original meanings of clarity was sparse. In this interpretation, that means keeping it uncluttered by sticking to one definable thing at a time.

Clarity means no obstructions. It is straightforward and easy to understand.

Identifying whether you are being clear is a powerful practice. You will have a better understanding of your own intent. By having a direct intent, you are more likely to successfully communicate that to others and achieve your goals.

Step 3) Bring Clarity to Everything You Do

It’s never too late to bring clarity to your life and work. Tweet This

Stop settling for to-do lists that have a bunch of question marks in the center. That’s not an action list, it’s a self-satisfying distraction that stops you from getting what you need out of life.

You came here because you’re confused about how to build a website, but I challenge you to ask yourself about the root of that confusion. It’s time to find your clarity.

It starts by questioning your personal motives. Then, you figure out how to start communicating your professional goals more clearly.

Only then can you truly build a website that is clear in a way that will further your goals.

The Website Clarity Checklist

As much as I hope this lesson helps you in your everyday life, I’m here to help you build a clear website. Before you can worry about detailed page-to-page optimization, your website needs to pass this clarity checklist:

How does the existence of this website further your personal and professional goals?

If you could only choose one, what is the single goal of the website?

Who is the perfect visitor of the website, if you had to describe them like a character in a book?

What is the main action that this visitor will take on the website? How will they know to do this, or how to successfully perform this action?

It’s Your Turn to Discover Clarity

The more clarity I find in life, the more success I have – no matter what it is I try to do. Research and evidence shows that this is not by mistake.

With a little direction, even your mistakes are more likely to be successes.

You will be more successful if you put a focus on clarity, and follow through on what you find.

Start by looking inwardly to find clarity for your personal life.

Next, apply that clarity to your external communications to achieve your professional goals.

Finally, make sure that this clarity runs over and shines through the content and user experience of your website.

I’m not sure whether holistic web design is already a thing, but stepping back to consider why you’re building a website in the first place makes sense to me. I hope it brings some clarity for you, too.

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About Anne Dorko

Anne is always sharpening her web strategy skills, from design to content creation. She helps people like you succeed online by sharing insight from her 10 years of experience. Go get your 30 minute consultation while orientations are still free!